Last week, on June 8, we celebrated World Oceans Day to raise awareness about the management of ocean resources to be more sustainable. To this end, we would like to draw attention to the problem of plastic waste, which is the biggest threat to our oceans.
The unstoppable increase in plastic production and consumption has become an environmental problem that the world can no longer ignore and needs urgent attention. The countries where plastic pollution is seen the most are the countries with inadequate garbage separation and collection systems. Waste separation is so important as it contributes to the recycling process.
Making this distinction greatly reduces the chance of garbage being damaged or cut during collection. Hazardous wastes need to be handled especially compared to other wastes, so it is important to separate the waste type from each other. But, even in developed countries with a garbage collection system, segregation is a serious problem because it is typically cheaper for developed countries to export containers of plastic debris halfway around the world than to deal with it locally. According to The Nyu Dispatch's article, Malaysia became the world's top importer of plastic waste in 2018, receiving hundreds of millions of tons from the United States, Europe, Japan, and other wealthy nations. Thailand and Vietnam, Malaysia's neighbours, were obliged to follow the same.
The use of plastics dates backs more than a century. During World War II, plastic material made from fossil fuels made it possible to obtain war materials quickly and cheaply. After the war ended, the popularity of this lightweight, convenient and cheap material became the reason why so much plastic threatens our planet today. Of course, the reason for this intense interest in plastics was the contribution of this material to the development of the modern world. Equipment used in medicine, exoskeletons of cars, aircraft construction, clothing, and even simply facilitating the consumption of clean water are among the benefits of plastic.
Today, we use plastic in all our daily activities such as spending time on our smartphones and tablets, watching TV, shopping, cooking, etc. And, you might think throwing it away after use is enough, but it's not. Plastics are man-made, not natural, so our planet doesn't know how to decompose them and thus, the plastics flowing into the ocean threaten life by disrupting the balance in the water. Yes, the modern world cannot exist without plastics, we cannot live without them, so can we live with them?
This used and expired plastic waste, which has been around for a century, flows from the land to the oceans. When plastic waste is thrown into rivers by factories from time to time, it reaches the seas from these rivers. Once these plastics meet ocean water, they can be transported anywhere in the world. Furthermore, the regions in the oceans where these plastics are collected by currents even have names. The ocean is divided into five gyres. One is in the Indian Ocean, two are in the Atlantic, and two are in the Pacific. Each gyre contains garbage patches of various sizes. The biggest one is The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is in the Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and California confirmed by the Marine Debris Program. We have plastic dumps in our oceans.
So what can we do about it? The answer is recycling. Although not every type of plastic is fully suitable for recycling, it is possible to produce plastics suitable for recycling. Of course, reducing the use of plastic in our daily lives individually is important for living in a healthy society, but businesses have a great responsibility to contribute to this recycling process and raise awareness.
At ESHClub we are committed to sustainability. To this end, we take initiatives to help businesses become more sustainable and environmentally conscious. One of these initiatives is EcoAttire which is a service offered to Hospitality, by Dan Pontarlier.
EcoAttire offers a complete solution for changing a brand's image by including sustainable uniforms. This program was able to produce prêt-à-porter and made-to-measure clothing for employees by collaborating with leaders in the sustainable textile business. Fabrics that have been discarded, repurposed textiles, and repurposed materials have all been used. A customized catalog for the brand contains all the available options.
We hope to boost your firm’s image while positively influencing the environment and society by combining sustainability with striking designs. Dan Pontarlier designed the uniforms, which were made in Sweden. Among the materials used there is Tencel yarn made from wood pulp and wood waste. Seaqual yarn is created from ocean waste that has been recycled. Newlife yarn is created from plastic bottles that have been recycled. Seaqual yarn, for example, is made entirely from recycled ocean plastic waste and is created to a high standard by the Seaqual Initiative, a community dedicated to cleaning our oceans and raising awareness about marine pollution. Thanks to this project, there are positive impacts such as reduction in CO2 emissions, water & energy usage.
We hope that this plastic pollution in the oceans and around the world will come closer to a solution with increased awareness and developments. Thanks to the support and participation of businesses in the idea of recyclability, initiatives such as EcoAttire can take the place of the traditional in the sector and make a change in the perception of individuals.
We believe that it is in our hands to protect our modern world by eliminating plastic pollution, recycling it with a sustainable approach, and using its potential.
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